A rebounder is a mini-trampoline. It's circular, maybe 4 feet in diameter. You stand on the rubber mat, and gently bounce up and down.

I've owned a rebounder for 20 months, and it's the best piece of exercise equipment I've ever owned. I bounce up and down gently for at least 10 minutes every day. Since I live alone, mine sits in my living room. It's always instantly available; nothing to set up, nowhere to drive, no concerns about weather. Rebounders also come in versions that fold, so you can store them out of sight.

Rebounders provide superb exercise for every part of the body, but especially the lymph system. You've got 5 to 6 quarts of blood in your body, and a pump to keep it circulating. But you have five times as much lymph as blood -- and NO pump to circulate lymph.

I'm sure that most people on this forum know that the lymph system is a kind of metabolic dumpster for the body. Our 75 trillion cells are constantly casting off toxins, dead cells, and a wide variety of waste products. All that unwanted debris goes into the lymph system.

And since there's no pump to get rid of it, all those wastes, some of them quite toxic, just sit there in the lymph system. There are only three things that get the lymph flowing: (1) Gravity (2) Internal massage to the valves of the lymph ducts, and (3) Muscular contraction from movement and exercise.

That's why so many American couch- potatoes are getting seriously sick. They eat terrible food, drink awful drinks, and when their cells expel the toxins into the lymph system, the toxins, for the most part, just STAY there. Perhaps they infect a breast or a prostate gland, or any one of dozens and dozens of organs. That's why people who are bed-ridden for, say, a broken leg, end up feeling really sick. The toxins just sit there, and infect various parts of the body.

Rebounding gets the lymph moving. Toxins and waste products don't get to hang around and cause trouble. As you bounce, the toxins are moved to the ducts which take them to the liver and kidneys. Rebounding is wonderful insurance against a broad spectrum of serious illnesses. And it's great fun! I feel like I'm 8 years-old when I'm bouncing on my rebounder. All of my 75 trillion cells are on the same page, doing the same thing.

I bought my rebounder online from Al Carter's company. It was pricey, but it came with a lifetime guarantee. Carter is the Bill Gates of rebounding. His website address is: www.healthbounce.com

However, I've since learned that Walmart sells perfectly good rebounders for around $25.00. I'd check them out before I went online. But Carter's site is FULL of information about rebounding, and worth exploring from an educational viewpoint, even if you choose the cheaper product.

Last point: all you need to do is bounce gently up and down. Your feet never have to leave the mat. You don't need to do cheerleader tricks. And if your balance is shaky, you can buy a railing that fits on the front 180 degrees of the circle.

If anything I've said resonates with you, I hope you'll consider buying a rebounder. Trust your intuition.

Blessings,

Owen